


Family.

by CristinaBlackthornKingson



Category: Magnus Chase and the Gods of Asgard - Rick Riordan, Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: Aunt-Niece Relationship, Best Friends, Big Sisters, Birthday, Boyfriends, Brother-Sister Relationships, Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Brothers, Cousins, F/M, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Gen, Genderfluid, Genderfluid Character, Half-Siblings, Little Sisters, M/M, Mother-Son Relationship, Other, Protective Siblings, Siblings, Sister-Sister Relationship, Sisters, Transgender, Uncle-Nephew Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-26
Updated: 2020-04-29
Packaged: 2021-03-02 00:28:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,268
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23856097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CristinaBlackthornKingson/pseuds/CristinaBlackthornKingson
Summary: After a long night in the hospital, Samirah Fadlan gives birth to her and Amir's first child, and of course the first ones there to meet the newest member of the family, are Alex and Magnus.
Relationships: Alex Fierro & Mallory Keen, Annabeth Chase & Magnus Chase, Annabeth Chase & Magnus Chase & Alex Fierro & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase & Percy Jackson, Annabeth Chase/Percy Jackson, Blitzen & Hearthstone, Blitzen & Magnus Chase, Blitzen & Magnus Chase & Hearthstone, Blitzen/Hearthstone, Estelle Blofis & Percy Jackson, Halfborn Gunderson/Mallory Keen, Magnus Chase & Alex Fierro, Magnus Chase & Alex Fierro & Halfborn Gunderson & Thomas Jefferson Jr. & Mallory Keen, Magnus Chase & Halfborn Gunderson, Magnus Chase & Hearthstone, Magnus Chase & Natalie Chase, Magnus Chase & Percy Jackson, Magnus Chase & Thomas Jefferson Jr., Magnus Chase/Alex Fierro, Samirah al-Abbas & Alex Fierro, Samirah al-Abbas & Loki, Samirah al-Abbas & Magnus Chase, Samirah al-Abbas/Amir Fadlan
Comments: 3
Kudos: 97





	1. Layla Kamilah Fadlan.

It is a warm spring day in April of 2024, when Magnus Chase receives some of the best news of his life.

It has now been 7 years since he died, went to Valhalla and had to delay Ragnarok many, many times. Thankfully these last few years have been fairly peaceful, he and Alex have been together for 7 years now too, and are very happy together. They often go back to Midgard to visit Annabeth and Percy, as well as Percy’s little sister Estelle, who is not so little anymore now she’s almost 8. They often visit Sam and Amir too, who got married 2 years ago and are very happy. They also spend a lot of time at The Chase Space, with the kids and teens who live there, as well as Blitz and Hearth who run the place when Magnus and Alex aren’t there, with the help of Sam and Amir. When they’re not travelling the 9 worlds they have their friends from floor 19 to keep them company, Mallory and Gunderson have been together again for about a year now, the longest they have gone so far, without breaking up. TJ is TJ of course, always talking about his time in the army and bickering with Gunderson, terrified of Mallory.

All in all life (or rather, afterlife) is good these days.

Currently Magnus and Alex are in Midgard visiting Sam and Amir, though really just Sam, seeing as Amir is at work and might not get back before Magnus and Alex leave. Sam has just gone upstairs to grab the gifts she got for her friends when her job recently took her to Thailand, while Magnus and Alex wait downstairs in the kitchen.

“Have you noticed something different about Sam lately?” Alex asks, leaning back in his chair so the front legs lift off the ground, and crossing his arms across his chest.

“No not really, why, have you?” Magnus asks, turning to look at his boyfriend. Alex nods.

“Yeah, she’s jumpy and keeps covering her stomach, I haven’t seen her wear anything that’s not flowy or baggy for months now. I think she’s pregnant.” Alex declares, giving Magnus a shock. He knew Sam and Amir were trying to have a baby, but apparently they only started trying last month, surely it couldn’t happen so quickly?

“You think so?” Magnus asks, scrunching his brow in confusion.

“Oh I know so, and I’m going to get her to tell us one way or the other today.” Alex says in a determined tone, smiling smugly to himself as if he has already gotten Sam to tell him the news. Though, as it will turn out, Alex won’t need to get her to tell him at all.

Twenty minutes later Sam has rejoined her friends in the kitchen and has managed to steer the conversation in the direction she was hoping for it to go.

“So I have something to tell you guys.” Sam says,

“Oh really? And what might that be?” Alex asks, propping his chin in his hand and smiling at Sam across the table.

“I’m pregnant.” Sam softly says in a joyful tone, her hands coming to rest on her stomach. Magnus’ jaw drops open while Alex punches the air in delight.

“I _knew_ it!” Alex exclaims.

“Wait you did? How?” Samirah asks in a confused tone. She and Amir had been so careful to keep the pregnancy a secret for the first 3 months, Sam went to great lengths to hide her stomach when she started to show a few weeks ago, and thankfully her morning sickness really only did happen in the mornings, so non of their friends saw her so ill and got suspicious.

“Come on Sam you know me, I miss nothing. I noticed you always hiding your stomach with baggy or flowy tops or holding something in front of your stomach, you haven’t touched coffee in weeks and you’ve been holding your stomach a lot and I don’t think it’s cramps that are the reason.” Alex explains.

“You would have been an amazing detective.” Sam says with a disbelieving shake of her head.

“I know right? I would look so good with a police badge.” Alex says in an admiring tone, examining his nails which he recently painted (you guessed it) green and pink.

“Sam, oh wow this is great! Congratulations! When are you due?” Magnus asks, having finally recovered from his shock. He really hadn’t believed Alex when he determined that Sam was pregnant.

“Thank you, I’m due the middle of October, I can’t wait.” Sam softly says, beaming widely the whole time.

“Do you know if it’s a boy or a girl?” Alex asks. Sam shakes her head.

“No, we’re going to leave it a surprise, it’s not important to us, we’ll be thrilled no matter what, we are just so happy to be having a baby in the first place.”

“I mean I don’t know how to change a dirty diaper or anything and I am not willing to learn, but Magnus can learn, so we can be first on call for babysitting duties.” Alex casually says, earning a wide eyed look from Magnus.

“I can? We can?” He asks, not sure how he feels about having just been volunteered to learn how to change diapers, by his boyfriend.

“Well duh, I can’t risk getting the contents of a diaper on my clothes, you can.” Alex answers with a flick of his wrist.

“Thanks, you’re too kind.” Alex grins and slings an arm around Magnus before leaning in to kiss his cheek.

“Aw cheer up Maggie, we’re going to have a little niece or nephew, and I absolutely intend to be baby’s favorite aunt and uncle, you, Hearth, Blitz and everyone else can get in line.”

“Oh just wait until Blitz finds out, he’s going to have you in the best maternity clothes you’ve ever seen, and your kid is going to be the most stylish baby in all the 9 worlds.” Magnus laughs. Blitzen has custom designed outfits for most of them, he made Annabeth’s wedding dress 3 years ago and is always making outfits for little Estelle, who just adores he and Hearth, she seems to like them more than she likes Percy or her parents.

“I have no idea where we’re going to put it all.” Sam laughs, looking around her a the moderate sized home she and Amir own. Of course she is in no way complaining, she is extremely glad to have so many wonderful friends around her at this very special time in her life.

The next few months pass by in a breeze, Sam is extremely grateful to have a smooth and easy pregnancy with no complications or scares in anyway. At 6 months, Alex, insists on throwing Sam and Amir a baby shower which was pretty small, though unforgettable seeing as a few of The Gods attended, namely Frigg, Freya, Odin, Thor and Heimdall.

Before anyone knows it, the baby is ready to make their appearance, and Sam and Amir rush to hospital in the middle of a cold October night, when Sam is awoken to contractions. Amir had called all of he and Sam’s friends and family from the hospital, and was even able to get word to those in Valhalla. He told them it could take a long time so they did not have to rush to the hospital straight away, but Sam was up for visitors if they wanted to visit. Magnus had wanted to wait a while and give Amir and Sam some privacy, but Alex refused, she was determined to see her sister and refused to leave the hospital until the baby was born, meaning she and Magnus have now been in the waiting room all night, with infrequent updates from Amir. Sam had requested Alex a few times, wanting her sister to make her laugh or tell her a dramatic story to distract her from the pain. The last time Alex had come back from Sam’s room she had told Magnus that Sam had gone to the delivery room, so the baby could be here very soon. That had been an hour ago, and now Magnus is starting to worry slightly. Is birth meant to take this long? Is there something wrong with Sam and her baby?

“I wonder if I was born in a hospital.” Alex’s thoughtful voice pulls Magnus from his thoughts. He turns to look at her with a confused look. Alex often comes out with strange things at strange times, but this was on another level.

“What?” Magnus asks in a confused tone.

“I wonder if I was born in a hospital. My mom is Loki, do you think I was born like other babies, normally? Like, I know Loki was pregnant with me for 9 months, I was a newborn when he showed up at my dad’s house with me and the last time dad had saw him, was about 9 months before that, but like, was I born in a hospital I wonder? Did my mom have to go through labor or could she have just decided she was done with the whole pregnancy thing and magically bring me into the world?” Alex ponders. Magnus is extremely thankful that the waiting room is empty, he would hate to have to explain everything Alex just said, to a mortal.

“Uh... I dunno. I was born in a hospital, my mom had to have a C-section, I was the wrong way around.” Magnus says.

“Of course you were, you couldn’t possibly be born in a normal way.” Alex laughs.

Before Magnus can reply, Amir steps into the waiting room, grinning widely.

“It’s a girl, Sam and I have a little girl.” He says in a proud, teary tone.

“How is she, how’s Sam?” Magnus asks.

“Perfect, absolutely perfect, both of them. Sam is tired and sore but utterly in love with our little girl, and the baby is as healthy as can be. She’s 8lbs exactly.” Amir tells them. At this, Alex winces.

“8 pounds? Ouch, poor Sam. Can we see them?”

“Of course, follow me.” Amir says. 5 minutes later they enter a small but cozy hospital room, where they immediately see Sam sitting up in a hospital bed, dressed in a plain white cotton hospital gown, her usually green hijab now white, to match her gown. In her arms, Sam cradles a tiny bundle of white and pale yellow blankets. Sam is holding one of the baby’s hands in hers and smiling softly down at her, her face alight with love and joy. When Sam hears the door open, she looks up and her smile widens when she sees Magnus, Alex and Amir.

“Alex, Magnus. Come meet your niece.” Sam softly says, beckoning them over. Magnus takes a seat in a chair next to Sam’s bed, while Alex plops down onto the edge of the bed beside her sister, resting her shoulder against hers and swinging her legs up onto the bed and tucking them up underneath her.

“She’s so cute.” Alex softly says, gently stroking her niece’s cheek. “Hello baby, I’m Alex, your Aunt, sometimes I’m your Uncle but I’m your Aunty today.” Alex then smiles up at her sister and softly says “I gotta hand it to you Sam, you made a pretty cute baby.” Sam grins and squeezes Alex’s hand.

“Yeah I did, didn’t I?”

“Um, I made her too.” Amir points out. Alex scoffs and waves a hand dismissively

“Oh please, you had unprotected sex one time and were done, Sam did all the actual hard work, growing and carrying the baby for nine months and then giving birth to her.”

“Can’t argue with that.” Magnus says in an amused tone.

“No, I can’t really, can I?”

“Does she have a name, Sam?” Alex asks, resting her head on her sister’s shoulder and letting the baby grip onto her hand. The baby seems fascinated by Alex, and who can blame her? With a shock of green hair, one gold eye and one brown, a pink and green checked sweater vest paired with green jeans and pink high tops, as well as pink and green nail polish, Alex is hard to miss and hard to not to be intrigued by.

“Yes she does, this is Layla Kamilah Fadlan.” Sam proudly announces. She and Amir had chosen a name a few months ago but had decided to keep it secret until the baby was born, until they knew if they had a boy or a girl.

“Little Layla, I love it. Man people have such good taste in names these days, Estelle, Layla, gotta love it.” Alex says in approving tone.

“Now we just have to hope Percy and Annabeth don’t choose an awful name for their baby, I think they’re leaning towards Luke.” Magnus says. Just a few weeks after Sam announced her pregnancy, Magnus had met up with Annabeth and almost immediately she had blurted out that she was pregnant. Magnus had been shocked but was also thrilled for her, he loves Annabeth and wants to see her happy, he knows she and Percy have wanted a family for a few years now and suffered a miscarriage last year. He’s looking forward to meeting Annabeth’s baby, his little second cousin (though the baby will be more like a nephew to him).

“Jackson or Chase?” Alex asks. “Jackson-Chase.” Magnus informs her.

“Oh a hyphenated surname, so modern! Luke Jackson-Chase, uh I love it!” Alex exclaims. Magnus is kind of glad that he and Alex can’t have kids, as einherjar, if they could and did have kids, Alex would likely be an absolute nightmare when it came to choosing their names.

“Do you want to hold her, Alex?” Sam asks. Alex’s eyes light up and she nods enthusiastically. Sam helps her sister to position her arms correctly before lowering the baby into them and sitting back, happily watching as Alex and Layla stare at each other in fascination. Seeing them makes Sam’s heart ache a little, she wishes she and Alex could have grown up together, wishes she had the chance to bond with her when they were kids, get to know her earlier and be there to support her and love her, when her dad wouldn’t.

“Hey there little Layla, you cutie! You and I are going to so much fun together, I’m going to teach you so much. We’ll start out with pottery, look at these long fingers, you’re destined to be a potter. Then Blitz and I will teach you all you need to know about fashion, don’t worry you’re going to be the best dressed baby on the playground. I’ll let Magnus and your mom and dad teach you about the nine worlds and all that boring stuff, while I’ll take you to get your first piercing and dye your hair when you’re older, we could be matching!” Alex happily rambles to the baby, laughing in delight when she reaches up and pats at her face. Alex spends a few more minutes fussing over Layla, before turning to Magnus and asking

“You wanna hold her?” On one hand Magnus very much wants to hold the baby, but on the other he is terrified he’ll hurt her and drop her, he’s no good with babies, has very little experience with them. He held Estelle a few times when she was a baby, but she had been 6 months old the first time he met her, not a tiny, vulnerable newborn.

“I... I would love to but I don’t want to break her.” He stammers. Alex snorts and roles her eyes.

“Is that what happened to you? Your mom dropped you on your head, when you were a baby? Cuz that would explain so much.”

“Oh ha-ha, you can’t be sure Loki didn’t drop you on your head when you were a baby, he’s not exactly a great parent.” Magnus points out, finding it hard to picture Loki holding baby Alex, even though he knows Loki has always been involved in Sam and Alex’s lives.

“Eh, fair point. Here, hold her. I want to text Blitzen and find out when he’s coming to Boston again, I need to get some new clothes.” Alex says, bundling little Layla into Magnus’ arms without warning. Magnus fumbles for a few minutes, but eventually manages to get a proper hold on the baby.

“Alex I think you have more clothes than everyone in Valhalla put together.” Magnus says, adjusting the blankets around Layla.

“Yeah and I need more, I have a reputation to upkeep, Chase. This is why I like Blitz so much better than you, he understands my fashion needs.” Alex sighs, while tapping away on her phone.

“If you love him so much why don’t you marry him?” Magnus teases.

“Oh I so would, but he’s gay and hopelessly in love with Hearth, and vice versa, even though those two ding-dongs can’t see it for themselves. It means I’m stuck with you, beantown.” Alex teases, slinging an arm around Magnus and kissing his cheek.

“You suck.” Magnus grumbles. Alex laughs and rests her head on his shoulder.

“Love you really.” She softly says, putting her phone down and resting her hand on Magnus’ chest. Magnus can’t help but grin and kiss her.

“I love you too.” Alex then looks down at Layla and grins, tickling her little cheek.

“Sorry Lay-Lay, we must be grossing you out and not paying enough attention to you.”

“Lay-Lay?” Sam asks in an amused tone. Of course Alex has already come up with a bizarre nickname for her niece, she shouldn’t have expected anything less.

“She has to have a nickname!” Alex exclaims. Sam just laughs and roles her eyes.

“Hey Layla, you’re awake!” Magnus says in a joyful tone, looking down at the baby to see she has her big brown eyes open. “Hi, you know who I am? I’m Magnus, I guess I’m technically your Uncle, which is pretty cool. I think I’ll be a good Uncle, we’ll do lots of fun stuff together, I’ll take you to the park and buy you all the candy your mom and dad won’t, I’ll let you watch scary movies and say bad words.” He coos to Layla, who continues to stare up at him with her big brown eyes, full of curiosity.

Half an hour later, both Magnus and Alex notice Sam growing more and more tired, so they decide to end their visit and go meet Hearth and Blitz at Blitzen’s best, so Alex can get some new clothes and Magnus and Hearth can catch up while Alex and Blitz are busy with the clothes. Twenty minutes after leaving the hospital, Magnus finds himself sitting in a comfortable armchair in Blitz’s shop, outside the dressing rooms, next to Hearth, while Alex tries clothes on in the dressing room and Blitz sorts through a pile of clothes that Alex has chosen, occasionally passing some into her.

“So Sam had the baby?” Blitz asks, looking at Magnus over his shoulder. Magnus grins and nods.

“Yeah, she was in labor all night but she gave birth this morning, Alex and I were at the hospital waiting, all night.” Magnus says.

_Boy or girl?_ Hearth signs.

“Girl, Layla Kamilah Fadlan.” Magnus replies.

“Oh she is just the cutest little thing you will ever have seen! Looks just like Sam, and has all this gorgeous black hair, oh she kills me with her cuteness!” Sam calls out from the dressing room, and Magnus then signs this out for Hearth, since he obviously can’t read Alex’s lips while she is in the dressing room.

“You got pictures?” Blitz asks, passing a bright green off the shoulder jumper, into Alex.

“Tons, here come see.” Magnus says, pulling his phone out and pulling up the pictures he took of baby Layla.

_She’s adorable._ Hearth signs, his eyes lit up with delight. A surprising thing about Hearth that Magnus recently learned, is that he loves babies and is wonderful with them. He hadn’t known this until he saw Hearth holding Estelle when she was 8 months old, smiling more than Magnus had ever seen him smile, while Estelle grinned and giggled, reaching out to pat at Hearth’s face or trying to grab his bag of rune stones and chew on it.

“Yeah, she is pretty adorable all right, and she’ll look even more adorable once I design some clothes for her. Hey maybe I should start a baby range!” Blitz says, his eyes lighting up.

_Or you could finish the other 10 projects you started but never finished._ Hearth signs with a smirk.

“Hey, don’t tell me what to do pal.” Blitz jokes, ruffling Hearth’s hair, which he knows Hearth hates. As Hearth and Blitz play fight, Magnus’ phone begins to ring and Percy’s number flashes up on his screen.

“Hey Percy.” Magnus answers.

“Magnus, are you around, are you in town?” Percy asks, a hint of panic in his tone.

“I’m in Boston but I can get to Manhattan if you need me to, why what’s going on?” Magnus asks in a concerned tone.

“It’s Annabeth, she-she had some bleeding and pains last night, so we went to the hospital a-and they said it was early labor, it seemed to stop on it’s own after a while but just a few minutes ago, A-Annabeth got up to use the bathroom and her water broke. The baby’s two months early and she really wants you, she’s been asking for you, can you come? Please?” Percy pleads. Magnus’ heart sinks into his stomach. He can’t imagine how terrifying this must be for Annabeth and Percy, Annabeth already had a miscarriage last year, and has been so fearful of that happening again this pregnancy, now the baby is going to be born 2 months early, and could end up not making it.

“Yeah, yeah I’ll be there as soon as I can, tell Annabeth I’m coming, I promise.” Magnus quickly hangs his phone up and shoves it in his pocket. “Alex!” He calls.

“What?” She replies.

“I have to go to Manhattan, Annabeth’s gone into labor 2 months early, she needs me, she’s been asking for me. Are you coming?” The door to the dressing room bangs open and Alex steps out, wearing the same clothes she was this morning.

“Try and stop me.”


	2. Luke Alexander Jackson-Chase.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After receiving a call from Percy to tell them Annabeth is in early labor, Magnus and Alex race to Manhattan to be with her and Percy, and support them over the next few difficult months, especially when it is revealed that the baby has complications due to his premature birth.

Just two hours after receiving the phone call from Percy saying that Annabeth had gone into premature labor, Magnus and Alex burst through the doors of the Metropolitan Hospital Center and rush up to the front desk.

“Excuse me, I’m looking for my cousin Annabeth Jackson-Chase, s-she’s in early labor a-and her husband called saying she was asking for me.” Magnus stammers, trying to catch his breath and calm his anxiety. Will they let him see Annabeth? Has the baby already been born? He and Alex flew here, so neither of them have had cell reception for a while now, meaning they weren’t able to get updates from Percy.

“Are you Magnus?” The nurse asks with a knowing smile. Magnus nods. “Annabeth’s been asking for you every few minutes, we were hoping you would get here soon, I’m nurse Worth, I’ve been taking care of Annabeth today, I’m her labor and delivery nurse. Baby is taking his time but he is coming, follow me and I’ll show you to where Annabeth is, she’ll be delighted to see you.” The nurse says in a kind tone, smiling warmly at Magnus.

“Thanks, this is my girlfriend, Alex, she’s close with Annabeth too, is it okay if she comes too?” Magnus asks, turning to look at Alex and reaching out to grab her hand.

“Boyfriend now, he/him.” Alex sternly says. Even though Magnus always respects and accepts Alex’s gender, he still tends to be defensive when correcting someone on his gender.

“Right, My boyfriend, Alex. Is it okay if he comes back too?” Magnus hopefully asks, turning back to the nurse.

“As long as Annabeth is alright with it.” Nurse Worth says. A few minutes later she leads them into a hospital room that is very similar to the one Sam was in this morning, though the atmosphere in this room is much different, with Sam everything was warm and happy and relaxed, but here with Annabeth and Percy, it’s cold and tense and fearful. Annabeth is dressed in a light blue hospital gown with a yellow cardigan thrown over it. Her blonde hair is loose around her shoulders, and she is holding her back as she paces around the room, breathing deeply and occasionally winces, as Percy looks on, eyes full of concern.

“Annabeth.” Magnus softly says, taking a step closer to his cousin. Annabeth looks at him and her face lights up when she sees him.

“Oh Magnus, oh thank the Gods you’re here.” She says in a tight tone, as Magnus hugs her tightly.

“I’m sorry it took me so long, we got here as fast as we could but we were in Boston when you called.” He softly says.

“No no don’t apologize, I’m just glad you’re here now.”

“So how is everything going? You know, all things considered?” Alex asks, giving Annabeth a brief hug and throwing a teasing wink to Percy, who blushes like hell.

“Oh, not great. The baby’s taking his time coming, that’s why I’m walking around, to try and make things go faster, but this little one is taking his leisurely time, bit like his dad that way.” Annabeth weakly laughs, running a hand down her bump.

“Is there anything we can do to help?” Magnus asks. Annabeth grimaces and shakes her head.

“No, just... stay with me for a while, both of you. Talk to me, distract me. Are... are Mallory and Gunderson on or off today?” Annabeth asks as she breathes through a contraction and Alex settles onto the foot of the bed, making himself right at home as usual.

“They’ve been together for a solid year now, and only killed each other like 5 or 6 times.” Alex says in an impressed voice.

“Only 5 or 6 times?” Annabeth laughs.

“Hey that’s amazing for Mallory and Gunderson, when we’re in Valhalla they usually kill each other at least once a week.” Alex says, resting his chin in his hand.

“How many times have you killed Magnus, and vice versa?” Percy asks in an amused tone.

“This year? Oh I’ve killed beantown countless times, but he’s never killed me.” Alex informs them.

“I’m such a terrible boyfriend aren’t I?” Magnus dryly asks. Alex grins and pulls him down by his shirt to kiss him.

“The absolute worst.”

“D-did Samirah have her baby yet?” Annabeth asks, lowering herself down onto the bed next to Alex. “Yeah, this morning actually, little girl.” Magnus gently says, not wanting to further upset Annabeth. Having a baby has been much easier for Sam and Amir than it has for Annabeth and Percy, Sam and Amir only had to try for one month before getting pregnant, while Percy and Annabeth tried to a year before Annabeth fell pregnant the first time, then had a miscarriage. Then they took a break for a few months and tried again for another year before Annabeth fell pregnant again, and now the baby is two months early.

“Good, that’s good I’m glad.” Annabeth says, holding back her own tears. A little part of her cannot help but worry that Hera has cursed her, she is after all one of the Gods of Fertility and Motherhood, and she is not fond of Annabeth. It doesn’t seem far fetched to think that she is the one causing her fertility issues and seeming inability to carry a child to full term.

“We were with Blitz and Hearth at the shop, when you called. Blitz says he can make preemie clothes for the baby, for free. He knows you’ll have enough to worry about with paying for baby’s care and everything, you don’t need the stress of looking for affordable preemie clothes.” Magnus softly says. Blitz and Hearth were and are very concerned for Annabeth and her baby, they both get along well with Annabeth and even though neither of them can understand the pain Annabeth is going through, between the struggle to get pregnant and her recent miscarriage, they both have been there for her, to listen and talk and support her, which she has greatly appreciated.

“Oh that’s so kind of him. Once we know the kind of condition the baby is in, after he’s born, they’re welcome to come visit. I want this little one to know everyone I love, not just my friends from Camp, my family and Percy’s family.” Annabeth quietly says, looking down at her stomach.

“I’ll tell them.” Magnus promises.

Annabeth continues to labor all through the rest of the day and night, Magnus, Alex and Percy take it in turns to go for walks to stretch their legs and get fresh air, and go get some decent food for them all, especially Annabeth who deserves better than hospital food. Annabeth manages to sleep through some of the night, in the bed, while Percy sleeps on a cot bed the nurses brought in and set up for him, Magnus curls up in one of the chairs by Annabeth’s bed, and Alex takes the sofa, even though he could shift into a cat or something and comfortably sleep on the floor, he decides it’s best not to, around the mortals who will very likely notice the green haired kid dressed in green and pink missing, and in his place a cat that wasn’t there before and should not be in the hospital due to health and safety.

At 1:00 P.M. the next day, after 28 hours of labor, Annabeth is finally ready to deliver her baby. Magnus and Alex both give her a hug and a kiss, wishing her well and promising to stay in the hospital, in the waiting room, knowing she’ll need all the support she can get after the baby is born. It’s been 3 hours now, and Magnus is getting tired of hospital waiting rooms, much as he loves Sam and Annabeth and is happy to be there for them both during this important time, he can’t deny that he is looking forward to getting back to Valhalla, having a proper meal with his friends, having a warm shower, then falling into bed with Alex, and sleeping for as long as he wants.

“Hey, your dad and aunt are Gods of fertility, can they help Annabeth and her baby?” Alex asks Magnus, pulling him from his thoughts.

“No, I thought of that too. When Annabeth had her miscarriage I spent a lot of time praying to my dad and Aunt Freya, asking them to help Annabeth have a baby. At one point my dad came to visit me and he told me he and Freya can’t do anything drastic, they might be able to help a little but not much, and they definitely can’t help now, once a baby is born it’s out of their hands, and they’re not allowed to interfere with Greek or Roman demigods, and the Greek and Roman Gods aren’t allowed to interfere with us.” Magnus explains in a disappointed tone.

“It kinda makes me glad we can’t have kids, I don’t know if I would want them if I could, but I can’t imagine going through what Annabeth and Percy are.” Alex quietly says, tapping his lip with the arm of his sunglasses.

“Me neither.”

“Magnus... do you think Loki will try and interfere with Layla? I know he’s still bound up in his cave but he got free once, he could do it again, and even if he doesn’t he can still try and influence Layla when she’s older, appear in her dreams and stuff.” Alex quietly asks in a worried tone. He knows what it’s like to grow up with Loki around, and would never want that for his niece.

“Honestly I would be surprised if he didn’t, but Layla has the protection of Odin and an entire floor of einherjar, an elf who practices rune-stone magic, and a dwarf who’s pretty deadly with an inflatable duck.” Magnus lightly says, reaching out and squeezing Alex’s hand, managing to get a laugh from him. Before Alex can reply, Magnus notices a shadow fall over them and turns to see Percy standing there, pale, his black hair in disarray and eyes full of worry and anxiety.

“Percy, is everything okay?” Magnus asks in a concerned tone.

“Um, yes and no.” Percy starts in a wobbly tone. “We have a little boy, Luke. He’s small, really small. T-the nurse told me h-he’s 3lbs and 3oz. H-he has some breathing issues and... other stuff so they took him straight to the NICU, I haven’t held him yet and I only saw him for a few seconds.”

“And Annabeth?” Alex asks in a worried tone.

“Um... Annabeth hemorrhaged, twice. The baby was born by emergency C-section and Annabeth’s still in theater now, they’re still trying to stop the bleeding. I... I don’t know what to do.” Percy breaks down in tears, sinking into a seat next to Alex and burying his face in his hands. Magnus and Alex share a concerned look and Alex places a gentle hand on Percy’s back.

“Is... is she going to be okay?” Magnus weakly asks, terrified for his cousin’s life. It’s not like if Annabeth dies she’ll go to Valhalla, she’s Greek not Norse, and if she does die it won’t be in battle with a weapon in her hand, though Magnus would absolutely argue that birth is a battle, this one was anyway.

“I don’t know, they told me to come wait out here and... they’ll keep me updated.” Percy weakly says.

“We’ll wait with you seaweed brain, we’re not going anywhere.” Alex softly says, his hand still on Percy’s shoulder.

Finally, what feels like an eternity later but is really an hour, a nurse walks into the waiting room and smiles kindly at the three boys.

“Percy, Annabeth is out of theater now. We stopped the hemorrhage and all seems to be well. She has had to have a blood transfusion and she’s still unconscious but she should wake soon.” The nurse gently explains, lifting a weight from the chests of Percy, Magnus and Alex.

“A-and the baby? Is he okay?” Percy asks. “Well he’s small as you know, and during the hearing test he referred in both ears.” The nurse softly explains.

“W-what does that mean?” Percy asks, fear settling in again.

“It means baby did not pass his hearing test. That doesn’t automatically mean he is deaf, there could be other reasons for the deferring and we are going to refer him to a specialist, who of course will come see him here.” The nurse gently says.

“W-when will that be?” Percy stammers.

“Luckily our specialist has a free slot tomorrow morning.”

“So... the baby could be deaf?” Percy asks.

“It’s a possibility.” The nurse says.

“But that’s all? His weight and his hearing? That’s all that’s wrong?” Percy asks, a tinge of hope in his voice. He and Annabeth were and are fully prepared to raise a child with any special needs or disabilities or anything, thanks to Hearth they know ASL and will be able to teach the baby as he grows, so he can always have a way to communicate. Percy’s mother knows ASL, as does Paul (Sally learned so she could talk to Hearth, and Paul learned before he became a teacher, knowing that he could have a student or students who need to communicate through ASL, at anytime). so they’ll be able to communicate with their grandson, and their friends at both Camps and Annabeth’s dad will be able to learn, so they can communicate with the baby too.

“Yes that’s all, would you like to come see him?” The nurse asks.

“I... yes, but I don’t want Annabeth to be alone. Can Magnus and Alex sit with her? Please? Until I can get back and sit with her myself.” Percy asks.

“Are you family?” The nurse asks, turning her gaze on Magnus and Alex.

“I’m her cousin.” Magnus says.

“And I’m her cousin’s boyfriend, Annabeth is family to me too, I’ve known her for 7 years.” Alex says, adding just a little bit of Charmspeak (A gift inherited from his mother) to his voice.

“Alright then, you can sit with her.”

Magnus and Alex stay by Annabeth’s side, even when Percy returns from the NICU, with pictures and videos of the baby, for Annabeth when she wakes up. It takes a few hours, but eventually Annabeth does wake up and immediately starts asking about the baby. She is relieved to know that nothing extremely serious is wrong with him, and is in agreement with Percy that they are more than capable of raising a deaf child, he is still their son and just as perfect as they always knew he would be, and they will always love him no matter what.

A few hours after waking up, Annabeth is allowed to see the baby in the NICU, though only Percy is allowed to go with her, so Magnus and Alex can’t see the baby yet, however they did get permission from the Matron of NICU, to face time the Jackson-Chase’s in the NICU so they could see the baby and see Annabeth meet her son for the first time.

When Alex’s phone rings and he answers it, an image fills the screen, an image of Annabeth sitting in a chair in a small room, dressed in an old red top, black loose leggings and a white dressing gown, with her blonde hair down around her shoulders. In her arms is a tiny bundle of white blankets with a few tufts of blonde hair. Annabeth is gazing at the baby with more love than Magnus and Alex have ever seen.

“Oh Annabeth, Percy, he’s perfect.” Magnus softly says. Percy adjusts the phone so that he is now in shot, as well as Annabeth and the baby. He grins and gives them the thumbs up.

“Have you decided on his name?” Alex asks eagerly. Annabeth smiles and nods, while stroking the baby’s cheek.

“This is Luke Alexander Jackson-Chase.” She softly says, never once taking her eyes off the baby. Alex smiles, closes his eyes in contentment and places a hand over his heart.

“Uh, so beautiful and eloquent, I just love it! Can I tell Blitz? He want’s to make something for the baby with his name on it.”

“Sure, and you can tell them and your friends in Valhalla about Luke maybe being deaf, but don’t tell my mom or anything okay? We want to tell her and the others in person.” Percy asks.

“Of course.” Magnus says, while Alex nods in agreement.

Over the next few weeks, Magnus and Alex mainly split their time between Valhalla, Manhattan and Boston, though they spend most of their time with Annabeth, Percy and baby Luke, since they need the support more than Sam and Amir, who are more than understanding that Magnus and Alex can’t be with them and Layla as much as they would like, right now. Hearth and Blitz come to visit The Jackson-Chase’s a few times, Blitz always bringing clothes for Annabeth and baby Luke and Hearth always offering support and advice and helping them find resources for raising a deaf child. Hearth is more than happy to help out with Luke and helping him and his family to learn ASL, since his own family were horrific and abusive in regards to his disability, especially his father, he is just glad that little Luke will have a good support system and won’t be shamed for his disability and denied accessibility.

Thankfully Luke thrives in the NICU and doesn’t struggle to gain weight. 3 weeks after his birth, he is a healthy 4lbs and can have visitors aside from Annabeth and Percy, and two of the first people they choose to have visit, are of course Magnus and Alex, who are now standing in the NICU by Luke’s incubator, where Annabeth is sitting in her usual seat, holding her son while Percy gazes at them both with eyes full of love and adoration.

“You did a great job cuz, he’s adorable.” Magnus softly says, placing a hand on Annabeth’s shoulder and smiling down at her.

“He got all your good looks Annabeth, poor little thing wouldn’t want to look a thing like seaweed brain.” Alex teases, grinning at Percy.

“Wh_ bu_ You said I’m cute!” Percy protests. He of course has eyes for no one but Annabeth, but it’s always nice to be complimented.

“Yeah I meant cute as in adorable, like a baby, not cute as in hot. Magnus is hot cute, TJ is cute cute.” Alex explains in an exasperated tone, as if this should be extremely obvious to Percy and he’s an idiot for not realizing.

“How do you put up with him?” Percy asks Magnus, who grins and laughs as Alex leans in and kisses his cheek.

“Eh you get use to the teasing, it’s a small price to pay to be Alex Fierro’s boyfriend, I’m the luckiest man in all the nine worlds.” Magnus says in a fond tone, slipping an arm around Alex’s waist.

“And don’t you forget it beantown.” Alex grins, wrapping his arms around Magnus’ waist and resting his head on his shoulder. As the weeks pass by baby Luke continues to thrive, and soon he is discharged from the NICU into regular care, where he stays for another few weeks. Just two weeks after Annabeth was meant to have the baby, Luke is discharged from the hospital at a healthy 6lbs 6 oz, to two loving parents who could not be more thrilled to have him home.

When Alex heard that Luke was coming home from the hospital, she of course insisted on having a small welcome home party for him, at Annabeth’s and Percy’s house, with only Percy’s mom, dad and stepdad (Of course Alex could convince a God to come to a welcome home party, it’s hard to say no to Alex Fierro) as well as his half-brother Tyson, and of course little Estelle. Annabeth’s dad was out of town and couldn’t come, and Alex knew Annabeth wouldn’t want her stepmom there, or Athena, so she and Magnus are there to love and support Annabeth. The welcome home party only lasts an hour, and Magnus and Alex would be lying if they said they aren’t relieved to not have to travel to and from Boston and Manhattan all the time now. They’ll still visit Luke, Percy and Annabeth all the time, just not as frequently as they did in the hospital, they want to spend time with Sam, Amir and baby Layla as well as their other friends and family.

Today, Magnus and Alex decided to fly home to Boston, neither of them being able to face a 3 hour train ride.

“I never want to see another train or plane ever again.” Magnus grumbles, as and he Alex line up at the gate of the plane. Alex laughs and slings an arm around Magnus’ shoulder.

“Come on beantown, lets go make sure TJ hasn’t blown up floor 19 and Mallory and Gunderson haven’t killed each other, lets go home.”


End file.
